Display control apparatus and display control method

ABSTRACT

Provided is a display control apparatus including a display control unit configured to control a display unit in a manner that a plurality of symbols is visibly displayed to a user, and a position acquisition unit configured to acquire information indicating a pointing position for specifying one or more symbols among the plurality of symbols. The display control unit controls the display unit in a manner that a predetermined object is displayed to indicate a group to which the plurality of symbols belongs according to the pointing position.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of Japanese Priority PatentApplication JP 2013-270049 filed Dec. 26, 2013, the entire contents ofwhich are incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure relates to a display control apparatus, a displaycontrol method, and a program.

Recently, there are disclosed technologies for allowing a user torecognize a symbol of a pointing position by a user. For example, thereis disclosed a technology for allowing a user to recognize a symbol of apointing position by displaying an object with respect to the symbol ofthe pointing position (see, for example, JP 2011-191811A).

SUMMARY

However, even if an object is displayed on a symbol of a pointingposition, a user may not recognize information on the symbolcorresponding to the pointing position. Therefore, it is desirable toprovide a technology that can allow a user to more reliably recognizeinformation on a symbol corresponding to a pointing position.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, there is provideda display control apparatus including a display control unit configuredto control a display unit in a manner that a plurality of symbols isvisibly displayed to a user, and a position acquisition unit configuredto acquire information indicating a pointing position for specifying oneor more symbols among the plurality of symbols. The display control unitcontrols the display unit in a manner that a predetermined object isdisplayed to indicate a group to which the plurality of symbols belongsaccording to the pointing position.

According to another embodiment of the present disclosure, there isprovided a display control method including controlling a display unitin a manner that a plurality of symbols is visibly displayed to a user,acquiring information indicating a pointing position for specifying oneor more symbols among the plurality of symbols, and causing a processorto control the display unit in a manner that a predetermined object isdisplayed to indicate a group to which the plurality of symbols belongsaccording to the pointing position.

According to another embodiment of the present disclosure, there isprovided a program for causing a computer to function as a displaycontrol apparatus including a display control unit configured to controla display unit in a manner that a plurality of symbols is visiblydisplayed to a user, and a position acquisition unit configured toacquire information indicating a pointing position for specifying one ormore symbols among the plurality of symbols. The display control unitcontrols the display unit in a manner that a predetermined object isdisplayed to indicate a group to which the plurality of symbols belongsaccording to the pointing position.

According to the present disclosure described above, it is possible toallow a user to more reliably recognize information related to a symbolcorresponding to a pointing position. Note that the above effects arenot necessarily limited thereto. In addition to or alternative to theabove effects, any one of effects that are set forth in the presentspecification or other effect that can be grasped from the presentspecification may be achieved.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of appearance of a displaycontrol apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of functional configurationof a display control apparatus;

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a first example of displaying an objectcorresponding to a pointing position;

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a second example of displaying anobject corresponding to a pointing position;

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of attaching a highlightdisplay to a symbol;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an operation flow of a displaycontrol apparatus in association with an example of attaching ahighlight display to a symbol;

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of changing a boundarybetween groups in a case where extraction results are extracted based ona plurality of symbols belonging to the same group, respectively;

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating an operation flow of a displaycontrol apparatus in association with an example of changing a boundarybetween groups in a case where extraction results are extracted based ona plurality of symbols belonging to the same group, respectively;

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen displayed in acase where a display unit is vertically long;

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen displayed in acase where a display unit is horizontally long;

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating an operation flow of a displaycontrol apparatus in association with an example of changing a boundarybetween groups according to a direction of a display unit;

FIG. 12 is a diagram for describing an example of a calculation of apriority of each symbol;

FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating an operation flow of a displaycontrol apparatus in association with an example of considering apriority of each symbol; and

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configurationof a display control apparatus.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENT(S)

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present disclosure will bedescribed in detail with reference to the appended drawings. Note that,in this specification and the appended drawings, structural elementsthat have substantially the same function and structure are denoted withthe same reference numerals, and repeated explanation of thesestructural elements is omitted.

Also, in this specification and the appended drawings, there are somecases where multiple structural elements that have substantially thesame function and structure are distinguished from one another by beingdenoted with different alphabets or numbers after the same referencenumerals. However, in a case where it is unnecessary to distinguish themultiple structural elements that have substantially the same functionand structure from one another, the multiple structural elements aredenoted with the same reference numeral only.

Note that description will be provided in the following order.

-   -   1. Overview of Display Control Apparatus    -   2. Example of Functional Configuration of Display Control        Apparatus    -   3. Detailed Function of Display Control Apparatus    -   4. Example of Hardware Configuration of Display Control        Apparatus    -   5. Conclusion

1. OVERVIEW OF DISPLAY CONTROL APPARATUS

First, an overview of a display control apparatus 10 according to anembodiment of the present disclosure will be described. FIG. 1 is adiagram illustrating an example of appearance of a display controlapparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.Referring to FIG. 1, the display control apparatus 10 includes an inputunit 120 and a display unit 160. The input unit 120 detects a useroperation and outputs the detected user operation to a control unit 110as also described below. Also, the display unit 160 displays a selectionresult screen 161, a selection candidate screen 162, and a symbol inputscreen 163.

The symbol input screen 163 is a screen on which a plurality of symbolsis displayed. In FIG. 1, a keyboard on which a plurality of alphabets isdisplayed is displayed as an example of the screen on which theplurality of symbols is displayed, and alphabets are displayed as anexample of the symbols. However, the symbols are not limited to thealphabets. For example, the symbols may be non-alphabetic characters(for example, Chinese characters, hiragana, katakana, numbers, or thelike), or may be marks (for example, parentheses, or the like).

The selection candidate screen 162 is a screen on which selectioncandidates are displayed. Here, the selection candidate may be anextraction result from recorded data corresponding to a pointingposition by a user with the symbol input screen 163. The recorded datamay be any data. For example, the recorded data may be data selected inthe past by the user (hereinafter, also referred to as “user selectionhistory”) or may be dictionary data recorded in advance. Note that, inthe example illustrated in FIG. 1, three selection candidate screens 162are present, but the number of the selection candidate screens 162 isnot particularly limited.

The selection result screen 161 is a screen on which a result selectedfrom the selection candidates is displayed as a selection result. FIG. 1illustrates an example in which “earf”, a combination of symbols “e”,“a”, “r”, and “f” closest to pointing positions when a user performspointing four times, is displayed on the selection result screen 161. Onthe selection result screen 161, the result selected from the selectioncandidates can be displayed as the selection result. The user can edit asentence by adding the selection result on the selection result screen161.

In FIG. 1, an example in which the display control apparatus 10 isconfigured by a wristband type display apparatus is illustrated, but thedisplay control apparatus 10 may be realized by wearable displaydevices, such as a head mount display (HMD), other than the wristbandtype display device. Also, the display control apparatus 10 may also beapplied to a smartphone, a video camera, a digital camera, a personaldigital assistants (PDA), a personal computer (PC), a mobile phone, aportable music reproduction device, a portable video processing device,a portable game machine, and the like. Here, for example, in order toallow the user to recognize the symbol of the pointing position by theuser, it is assumed to display objects corresponding to symbols ofpointing positions among the plurality of symbols displayed on thesymbol input screen 163. However, even if the object is displayed on thesymbol of the pointing position, the user may not recognize informationon the symbol corresponding to the pointing position.

For example, in a case where the display unit 160 is small just like thewristband type display device, there easily occurs a situation that theobject displayed on the symbol of the pointing position is hidden by auser's finger. In a case where such a situation occurs, the user may notrecognize information on the symbol corresponding to the pointingposition. Therefore, in this specification, there is proposed atechnology capable of allowing a user to more reliably recognizeinformation related to a symbol corresponding to a pointing position. Inthe above, the overview of the display control apparatus 10 according tothe embodiment of the present disclosure was described.

2. EXAMPLE OF FUNCTIONAL CONFIGURATION OF DISPLAY CONTROL APPARATUS

Subsequently, a functional configuration example of the display controlapparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure willbe described. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of functionalconfiguration of the display control apparatus 10 according to anembodiment of the present disclosure. As illustrated in FIG. 2, thedisplay control apparatus 10 includes a control unit 110, an input unit120, a sensor unit 130, a storage unit 140, a communication unit 150,and a display unit 160.

The control unit 110 exhibits various functions of the control unit 110by executing a program stored in the storage unit 140 or other storagemedium. As illustrated in FIG. 2, the control unit 110 includesfunctional blocks, such as a position acquisition unit 111 and a displaycontrol unit 112. Functions of these functional blocks will be describedin detail. The control unit 110 may be configured by a processor, suchas a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), adigital signal processor (DSP), or a system on chip (SoC). Also, thecontrol unit 110 is configured by an electronic circuit for performing avariety of arithmetic processing.

The input unit 120 detects a user operation and outputs the detecteduser operation to the control unit 110. For example, in a case where theinput unit 120 is configured by a touch panel, the user operation maycorrespond to an operation of tapping the touch panel. The touch panelmay detect a contact of an operation body or may detect proximity of theoperation body. However, the input unit 120 may be configured byhardware other than the touch panel. For example, in a case where theinput unit 120 is configured by an imaging device and a line of sight ofthe user is detected from an image captured by the imaging device, theuser operation corresponds to an operation of putting the line of sight.In the example illustrated in FIG. 2, the input unit 120 is integratedwith the display control apparatus 10, but the input unit 120 may beconfigured separately from the display control apparatus 10.

The sensor unit 130 acquires sensor data. For example, the sensor unit130 includes a triaxial acceleration sensor. The triaxial accelerationsensor measures a gravitational acceleration applied to the display unit160 and generates sensor data (acceleration data) thatthree-dimensionally represents the magnitude and direction of thegravitational acceleration. Also, the sensor unit 130 may include ageomagnetic sensor. The geomagnetic sensor generates sensor data(geomagnetic data) representing a direction of geomagnetism in acoordinate system of the display unit 160. Also, the sensor unit 130 mayinclude a gyro sensor. The gyro sensor measures an angular velocity ofthe display unit 160. In the example illustrated in FIG. 2, the sensorunit 130 is integrated with the display control apparatus 10, but thesensor unit 130 may be configured separately from the display controlapparatus 10.

The storage unit 140 stores a program for causing the control unit 110to operate by using a storage medium such as a semiconductor memory or ahard disk. Also, for example, the storage unit 140 can store variousdata to be used by the program. In the example illustrated in FIG. 2,the storage unit 140 is integrated with the display control apparatus10, but the storage unit 140 may be configured separately from thedisplay control apparatus 10.

The communication unit 150 can perform communication with otherapparatus (for example, other display control apparatus 10). Forexample, in a case where the communication unit 150 performscommunication with other display control apparatus 10, the communicationunit 150 can perform communication through a network. The mode of thecommunication by the communication unit 150 is not particularly limited,and may be a wireless communication or a wired communication. In theexample illustrated in FIG. 2, the communication unit 150 is integratedwith the display control apparatus 10, but the communication unit 150may be configured separately from the display control apparatus 10.

The display unit 160 displays a variety of information under the controlof the control unit 110. The display unit 160 may be realized by aliquid crystal display (LCD), may be realized by an organicelectro-luminescence (EL) display, may be realized by a projector, ormay be realized by a hologram display. In the example illustrated inFIG. 2, the display unit 160 is integrated with the display controlapparatus 10, but the display unit 160 may be configured separately fromthe display control apparatus 10. For example, a display deviceconnected to the display control apparatus 10 by wire or wireless may betreated as the display unit 160. In the above, the example of functionalconfiguration of the display control apparatus 10 according to theembodiment of the present disclosure was described.

3. DETAILED FUNCTION OF DISPLAY CONTROL APPARATUS

Subsequently, a function of the display control apparatus 10 accordingto an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described in detail.First, the display control unit 112 in the display control apparatus 10controls the display unit 160 such that a plurality of symbols isvisibly displayed to the user. Specifically, the display control unit112 generates display control information for displaying a screen on thedisplay unit 160 and outputs the generated display control informationto the display unit 160. In this way, the display control unit 112 cancontrol the display unit 160 such that the relevant screen is displayedon the display unit 160. Subsequently, the input unit 120 receives, fromthe user, the input of information indicating the pointing position forspecifying one or more symbols among the plurality of symbols. Theposition acquisition unit 111 acquires information indicating thepointing position from the input unit 120.

Here, the pointing position may be determined in any manner. Forexample, the pointing position may be determined based on at least oneof the line-of-sight detection result and the detection result by thetouch panel. Specifically, in a case where the input unit 120 includesan imaging device, the position acquisition unit 111 may acquire animage captured by the imaging device, detect a line of sight of the userfrom the acquired image, and determine a position of the detected lightof sight as the pointing position. Also, in a case where the input unit120 includes a touch panel, the position acquisition unit 111 determinesa detection position detected by the touch panel as the pointingposition.

Subsequently, the display control unit 112 controls the display unit 160so as to display a predetermined object indicating a group to which aplurality of symbols belongs according to the pointing position.According to such a configuration, since the group is greater than thesymbol, it is possible to allow a user to more reliably recognizeinformation related to the symbol corresponding to the pointingposition. Also, it is possible to reduce the possibility that will givethe user a feeling of pressure that the user has to perform an accuratepointing with respect to a desired symbol, thereby allowing the user toperform the pointing more comfortably. Furthermore, since thepossibility that an incorrect pointing will be performed between groupsis smaller than the possibility that an incorrect pointing will beperformed between symbols, it is possible to reduce the possibility thatan incorrect pointing will be performed. A specific example will bedescribed below with reference to FIG. 3. FIG. 3 is a diagramillustrating a first example of displaying an object corresponding to apointing position. Referring to FIG. 3, a plurality of symbols isdisplayed on a symbol input screen 163-1.

Also, referring to FIG. 3, the plurality of symbols displayed in thismanner is divided into three groups (groups G1 to G3). In the exampleillustrated in FIG. 3, the number of the groups is three, but the numberof the groups is not particularly limited as long as symbols are dividedsuch that a plurality of symbols belongs to each group. Also, in FIG. 3,a boundary between the groups is indicated by a curve, but the boundarybetween the groups may be any line or a straight line. Furthermore, inthe example illustrated in FIG. 3, the boundary between the groups isdisplayed, but the boundary between the groups may not be displayed.

Subsequently, as illustrated in a symbol input screen 163-2, the inputunit 120 receives, from the user, the input of information indicating apointing position P among a plurality of symbols. The positionacquisition unit 111 acquires information indicating the pointingposition P from the input unit 120. The display control unit 112controls the display unit 160 so as to display an object Obj indicatinga group G1 corresponding to the pointing position P. More specifically,the display control unit 112 may control the display unit 160 so as todisplay the object Obj indicating the group G1 to which a symbol “s”closest from the pointing position P belongs.

In FIG. 3, an example in which the object Obj is displayed to fill theentire group G1 is illustrated, but a display form of the object Obj isnot particularly limited as long as the group G1 can be recognized bythe user. For example, the display control unit 112 may control thedisplay unit 160 so as to display some objects associated with the groupG1, or may control the display unit 160 so as to display some objects inthe group G1.

In the above, the first example of displaying the object correspondingto the pointing position was described. Subsequently, a second exampleof displaying an object corresponding to a pointing position will bedescribed with reference to FIG. 4. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating asecond example of displaying an object corresponding to a pointingposition. Referring to FIG. 4, in the second example, a plurality ofsymbols is displayed on a symbol input screen 163-3, as in the symbolinput screen 163-1 of the first example.

Also, referring to FIG. 4, the plurality of symbols displayed in thismanner is divided into three groups (groups G1 to G3). In the exampleillustrated in FIG. 4, the number of the groups is three, but the numberof the groups is not particularly limited as long as symbols are dividedsuch that a plurality of symbols belongs to each group. Also, in FIG. 4,a boundary between the groups is indicated by a straight line, but theboundary between the groups may be any line or may be a curve asdescribed above. Furthermore, in the example illustrated in FIG. 4, theboundary between the groups is displayed, but the boundary between thegroups may not be displayed.

Subsequently, as illustrated in a symbol input screen 163-4, the inputunit 120 receives, from the user, the input of information indicating apointing position P among a plurality of symbols. The positionacquisition unit 111 acquires information indicating the pointingposition P from the input unit 120. The display control unit 112controls the display unit 160 so as to display an object Obj indicatinga group G2 corresponding to the pointing position P. More specifically,the display control unit 112 may control the display unit 160 so as todisplay the object Obj indicating the group G2 to which a symbol “s”closest from the pointing position P belongs.

In FIG. 4, an example in which the object Obj is displayed to fill theentire group G2 is illustrated, but a display mode of the object Obj isnot particularly limited as long as the group G2 can be recognized bythe user. For example, the display control unit 112 may control thedisplay unit 160 so as to display some objects associated with the groupG2, or may control the display unit 160 so as to display some objects inthe group G2.

In the above, the second example of displaying the object correspondingto the pointing position was described. Here, in each of the firstexample and the second example described above, the example ofdisplaying the object indicating the group corresponding to the pointingposition has been described, but a highlight display may be additionallyperformed so as to allow the user to recognize the symbol of thepointing position. Subsequently, an example of additionally performing ahighlight display so as to allow a user to recognize a symbol of apointing position will be described with reference to FIG. 5.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of attaching a highlightdisplay to a symbol. Referring to FIG. 5, a plurality of symbols isdisplayed on a symbol input screen 163-5, as in the symbol input screen163-3 of the second example. Also, referring to FIG. 5, the plurality ofsymbols displayed in this manner is divided into three groups (groups G1to G3), as in the symbol input screen 163-3 of the second example.

Subsequently, as illustrated in a symbol input screen 163-6, the inputunit 120 receives, from the user, the input of information indicating apointing position P among the plurality of symbols. The positionacquisition unit 111 acquires the information indicating the pointingposition P from the input unit 120. The display control unit 112controls the display unit 160 so as to display an object Obj indicatingthe group G2 corresponding to the pointing position P. Morespecifically, as in the symbol input screen 163-4 of the second example,the display control unit 112 may control the display unit 160 so as todisplay the object Obj indicating the group G2 to which a symbol “s”closest from the pointing position P belongs.

At this time, the display control unit 112 may attach a highlightdisplay H to the symbol “s”, of which a distance from the pointingposition P is closest. In this way, the highlight display H is attached,it is possible to allow the user to recognize the symbol of the pointingposition P. In the example illustrated in FIG. 5, the highlight displayH is attached in a way of filling a rectangular region (a rectangularregion a width of which is larger than a width of the object Obj) aroundthe symbol “s”, but the form of the highlight display H is notparticularly limited. For example, the highlight display H may beattached by a form capable of distinguishing from the object Obj.

Also, the highlight display H may be movable in the group G2. Forexample, as illustrated in a symbol input screen 163-7, in a case wherea pointing position P1 is moved to a pointing position P2 in the groupG2, the display control unit 112 may move the highlight display H in thegroup G2. Since an amount of movement of the highlight display H islimited, the display control unit 112 may move the highlight display Hbased on a result obtained by multiplying a predetermined coefficient byan amount of movement from the pointing position P1 to the pointingposition P2. Also, the object Obj and the highlight display H may beswitched. For example, the object Obj and the highlight display H may beswitched by a tap operation of the user, may be switched when durationof the tap operation of the user exceeds a threshold value, or may beswitched when a pressing by the tap operation of the user exceeds athreshold value. A device that detects the operation of the user is notlimited to the touch panel, and may be a gyro remote controller. In acase where the gyro remote controller is used, the object Obj and thehighlight display H may be switched by an operation of pressing a buttonseparate from a select button.

In the above, the example of additionally performing the highlightdisplay so as to allow the user to recognize the symbol of the pointingposition was described. As described above, a predetermined objectindicating a group corresponding to a pointing position is displayed.The group corresponding to the pointing position may be used in anymanner, but, for example, the display control unit 112 may perform dataextraction from recorded data based on the symbol belonging to the groupof the pointing position and display an extraction result extracted bythe data extraction on the display unit 160. For example, the displaycontrol unit 112 may display the extraction result on the selectioncandidate screen 162.

For example, in the example illustrated in FIG. 4, it is assumed thatthe pointing position is present in the group G1. In such a case,symbols belonging to the group G1 of the pointing position is “q”, “w”,“e”, . . . , “p”. Therefore, the display control unit 112 may performdata extraction from recorded data based on the symbols “q”, “w”, “e”, .. . , “p”. More specifically, the display control unit 112 may extractdata beginning with “q”, “w”, “e”, . . . , “p” from the recorded data.

A priority may be assigned to the extraction result. For example, thedisplay control unit 112 may preferentially display the extractionresult on the display unit 160 based on the symbol, of which a distancefrom the pointing position is closest. Also, the display control unit112 may preferentially display the extraction result on the display unit160 based on the symbol, of which a distance from the pointing positionis close. For example, since the number of the selection candidatescreens 162 on which the extraction results are displayed is limited,the display control unit 112 may select the extraction results to bedisplayed in descending order of priority. Also, the display controlunit 112 may determine the display positions of the extraction resultsaccording to the priority.

Also, the extraction results to be displayed are not limited to theextraction results based on one symbol. Therefore, the extractionresults may be displayed based on a symbol string in which a pluralityof symbols is combined. For example, the display control unit 112 maysequentially combine symbols belonging to the group of the symbolposition whenever the pointing position is pointed, and control thedisplay unit 160 such that the extraction result is displayed on thedisplay unit 160, based on the symbol string generated as the combinedresult.

For example, in the example illustrated in FIG. 4, it is assumed thatthe first pointing position is present in the group G1. In such a case,symbols belonging to the group G1 of the first pointing position is “q”,“w”, “e”, . . . , “p”. Subsequently, it is assumed that a next pointingis continuously performed and the second pointing position is present inthe group G2. In such a case, symbols belonging to the group G2 of thesecond pointing position is “a”, “s”, “d”, . . . , “l”. Therefore, thedisplay control unit 112 may perform data extraction from recorded databased on a symbol string generated as a result obtained by combining anyone of the symbols “a”, “s”, “d”, . . . , “l” next to any one of thesymbols “q”, “w”, “e”, . . . , “p”. More specifically, the displaycontrol unit 112 may extract, from recorded data, data beginning with asymbol string generated as a result obtained by combining any one of thesymbols “a”, “s”, “d”, . . . , “l” next to any one of the symbols “q”,“w”, “e”, . . . , “p”.

In the example illustrated in FIG. 1, “earful”, “raff”, and “watch” arerecorded as the recorded data, and data “earful” beginning with a symbolstring “ea” in which “a” is combined next to the symbol “e” is extractedfrom the recorded data. Also, data “raff” beginning with a symbol string“ra” in which “a” is combined next to the symbol “r” is extracted fromthe recorded data. Furthermore, data “watch” beginning with a symbolstring “wa” in which “a” is combined next to the symbol “w” is extractedfrom the recorded data.

Subsequently, the display control unit 112 may display the extractionresults on the display unit 160 as the selection candidates. In theexample illustrated in FIG. 1, each of the extraction results “earful”,“raff”, and “watch” is displayed as the selection candidate screen 162.When the user performs an operation of selection from the selectioncandidates, the display control unit 112 displays a result selected fromthe selection candidates on the display unit 160 as a selection result.The operation of selection from the selection candidates is notparticularly limited. Therefore, as described above, the operation ofselection from the candidates may be an operation of tapping the touchpanel, or may be an operation of putting the line of sight.

Subsequently, the operation flow of the display control apparatus 10according to the embodiment of the present disclosure will be describedwith reference to FIG. 6 (with reference to other drawings asappropriate). In particular, FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating theoperation flow of the display control apparatus 10 in association withan example of attaching a highlight display to a symbol. Since theexample illustrated in FIG. 6 is an example of the operation flow of thedisplay control apparatus 10, the operation flow of the display controlapparatus 10 is not limited to the example illustrated in FIG. 6.

First, the display control unit 112 controls the display unit 160 suchthat a plurality of symbols is displayed (S11). In the exampleillustrated in FIG. 5, the symbol input screen 163-5 is illustrated as ascreen on which the plurality of symbols is displayed. Subsequently,when the input unit 120 receives, from the user, the input ofinformation indicating a pointing position for specifying one or moresymbols among the plurality of symbols, the position acquisition unit111 acquires the information indicating the pointing position from theinput unit 120 (S12).

Subsequently, the display control unit 112 controls the display unit 160such that an object indicating a group corresponding to the pointingposition is displayed (S13). For example, in the example illustrated inFIG. 5, an object Obj indicating a group G2 corresponding to thepointing position P is displayed. At this time, the display control unit112 attaches a highlight display to a symbol, of which a distance fromthe pointing position is closest (S14). In the example illustrated inFIG. 5, the highlight display H is attached to the symbol “s”, of whichthe distance from the pointing position P is closest.

Subsequently, in a case where the pointing position is not moved withinthe same group (“No” in S15), the display control unit 112 proceeds tooperation S17. On the other hand, in a case where the pointing positionis moved within the same group (“Yes” in S15), the display control unit112 moves the highlight display H within the same group (S16). In theexample illustrated in FIG. 5, the highlight display H is moved withinthe group G2, based on the movement from the pointing position P1 to thepointing position P2.

Subsequently, the display control unit 112 performs a process ofextraction from recorded data, based on a plurality of symbols belongingto the group of the pointing position (S17). Then, the display controlunit 112 controls the display unit 160 such that extraction results aredisplayed as selection candidates (S18). Subsequently, when the userperforms an operation of selection from the selection candidates, thedisplay control unit 112 controls the display unit 160 such that theresult selected from the selection candidates is displayed as theselection result (S19). The operation may be ended after the displayingof the selection result as illustrated in FIG. 6, but the operation mayalso proceed to S12. The user can edit a sentence by adding a pluralityof selection results in sequence.

In the above, a case where a boundary between the groups is unchangedwas mainly described. However, the boundary between the groups may beunchanged or may be dynamically changed. That is, the display controlunit 112 may dynamically change the boundary between the groups. Theboundary between the groups may be changed at any timing. As oneexample, in a case where extraction results are extracted based on aplurality of symbols belonging to the same group, respectively, thedisplay control unit 112 may change the boundary between the groups suchthat the plurality of symbols belongs to different groups.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of changing a boundarybetween groups in a case where extraction results are extracted based ona plurality of symbols belonging to the same group, respectively.Referring to FIG. 7, as in the symbol input screen 163-1, a plurality ofsymbols is displayed on a symbol input screen 163-8. Also, referring toFIG. 7, as in the symbol input screen 163-1, the plurality of symbolsdisplayed in this manner is divided into three groups (groups G1 to G3).

Here, in a case where extraction results are extracted based on a firstsymbol and a second symbol belonging to the same group, respectively,the display control unit 112 may change the boundary between groups suchthat the first symbol and the second symbol belong to different groups.If the boundary between the groups is changed in this way, the displaycontrol unit 112 can display the extraction result on the display unit160 as the selection candidate based on one of the first symbol and thesecond symbol by the operation of selecting the symbol after the changeof the boundary. For example, it is assumed that extraction results“come” and “home” are extracted based on symbols “c” and “h” belongingto the group G2. In such a case, as illustrated in a symbol input screen163-9, the display control unit 112 may change the boundary between thegroups such that “c” and “h” belong to different groups (such that “c”belongs to a group G2# and “h” belongs to a group G3#.

In this way, for example, in a case where an operation of selecting thegroup G2# is performed, the display control unit 112 can display theextraction result on the display unit 160 as the selection candidatebased on the symbol “c” belonging to the group G2#. Also, for example,in a case where an operation of selecting the group G3# is performed,the display control unit 112 can display the extraction result on thedisplay unit 160 as the selection candidate based on a symbol “h”belonging to the group G3#.

Subsequently, the operation flow of the display control apparatus 10according to the embodiment of the present disclosure will be describedwith reference to FIG. 8 (with reference to other drawings asappropriate). In particular, FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating theoperation flow of the display control apparatus 10 in association withan example of changing a boundary between groups in a case whereextraction results are extracted based on a plurality of symbolsbelonging to the same group. Since the example illustrated in FIG. 8 isan example of the operation flow of the display control apparatus 10,the operation flow of the display control apparatus 10 is not limited tothe example illustrated in FIG. 8.

First, the display control unit 112 controls the display unit 160 suchthat a plurality of symbols is displayed (S21). In the exampleillustrated in FIG. 7, the symbol input screen 163-8 is illustrated as ascreen on which the plurality of symbols is displayed. Subsequently,when the input unit 120 receives, from the user, the input ofinformation indicating a pointing position for specifying one or moresymbols among the plurality of symbols, the position acquisition unit111 acquires the information indicating the pointing position from theinput unit 120 (S22). Subsequently, the display control unit 112controls the display unit 160 such that an object indicating a groupcorresponding to the pointing position is displayed (S23). Subsequently,the display control unit 112 performs a process of extraction fromrecorded data, based on a plurality of symbols belonging to the group ofthe pointing position (S24). Then, the display control unit 112 controlsthe display unit 160 such that extraction results are displayed asselection candidates (S25). Here, the display control unit 112determines whether extraction results are extracted based on theplurality of symbols belonging to the same group (S26).

In a case where the extraction results are extracted based on theplurality of symbols belonging to the same group (“No” in S26), thedisplay control unit 112 proceeds to operation S29. On the other hand,in a case where the extraction results are extracted based on theplurality of symbols belonging to the same group (“Yes” in S26), thedisplay control unit 112 changes the boundary between the groups suchthat the plurality of symbols belongs to different groups (S27). Whenthe user performs an operation of selecting a group, the display controlunit 112 controls the display unit 160 such that the extraction resultsare displayed as the selection candidates based on the plurality ofsymbols belonging to the selected group (S28). Subsequently, when theuser performs an operation of selection from the selection candidates,the display control unit 112 controls the display unit 160 such that theresult selected from the selection candidates is displayed as theselection result (S29). The operation may be ended after the displayingof the selection result as illustrated in FIG. 8, but the operation mayalso proceed to S22. The user can edit a sentence by adding a pluralityof selection results in sequence.

In the above, the example of changing the boundary between the groupssuch that the plurality of symbols belongs to different groups in thecase where the extraction results are extracted based on the pluralityof symbols belonging to the same group was described. Here, the boundarybetween the groups may be changed according to the direction of thedisplay unit 160. For example, when boundaries between groups aredifferent according to whether the display unit 160 is horizontally longor vertically long, it is possible to display an object easily viewableto the user. Therefore, in the following, an example in which thedisplay control unit 112 changes a boundary between groups according tothe direction of the display unit 160 will be described.

The direction of the display unit 160 may be calculated based on atleast one of an image captured by an imaging device and a resultmeasured by an acceleration sensor. For example, the display controlunit 112 may specify a gravitational direction from the result measuredby the acceleration sensor and calculate the direction of the displayunit 160 based on the gravitational direction. Also, the display controlunit 112 may detect a face region or an eye region from the imagecaptured by the imaging device and calculate the direction of thedisplay unit 160 based on the direction of the face region or the eyeregion. Alternatively, the direction of the display unit 160 may bepreset by the user.

Specific examples will be described below with reference to FIGS. 9 and10. FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen displayed ina case where the display unit 160 is vertically long. Also, FIG. 10 is adiagram illustrating an example of a screen displayed in a case wherethe display unit 160 is horizontally long. Referring to FIGS. 9 and 10,in the case where the display unit 160 is vertically long, the selectionresult screen 161 is vertically longer, more selection candidate screens162 are vertically disposed, and the symbol input screen 163 isvertically longer, as compared with the case where the display unit 160is horizontally long. If such a screen display is done, it is possibleto display a screen friendly for a user, regardless of the direction ofthe display unit 160.

Also, referring to FIG. 9, in the case where the display unit 160 isvertically long, the boundaries between groups are displayed in ahorizontal direction such that the groups G1 to G3 are verticallyaligned. On other hand, referring to FIG. 10, in the case where thedisplay unit 160 is horizontally long, the boundaries between groups aredisplayed in a vertical direction such that the groups G1 to G3 arehorizontally aligned. In this way, since the direction of the boundarybetween the groups is changed according to the direction of the displayunit 160 by the display control unit 112, the object indicating thegroup corresponding to the pointing position can be displayed to beviewed more easily.

Referring to FIGS. 9 and 10, in the case where the display unit 160 isvertically long and in the case where the display unit 160 ishorizontally long, the position of the symbol input screen 163 in thedisplay unit 160 is changed. In this way, since the position of thesymbol input screen 163 in the display unit 160 is changed according tothe direction of the display unit 160 by the display control unit 112,the symbols can be displayed to be viewed more easily.

Also, referring to FIGS. 9 and 10, in the case where the display unit160 is vertically long and in the case where the display unit 160 ishorizontally long, the direction of the symbol input screen 163 based onthe direction of the display unit 160 is changed. In this way, since thedirection of the symbol input screen 163 based on the direction of thedisplay unit 160 is changed according to the direction of the displayunit 160 by the display control unit 112, the symbols can be displayedto be viewed more easily.

Subsequently, the operation flow of the display control apparatus 10according to the embodiment of the present disclosure will be describedwith reference to FIG. 11 (with reference to other drawings asappropriate). In particular, FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating theoperation flow of the display control apparatus 10 in association withan example of changing boundaries between groups according to thedirection of the display unit 160. Since the example illustrated in FIG.11 is an example of the operation flow of the display control apparatus10, the operation flow of the display control apparatus 10 is notlimited to the example illustrated in FIG. 11.

First, the display control unit 112 controls the display unit 160 suchthat a plurality of symbols is displayed (S31). In the exampleillustrated in FIG. 9, the symbol input screen 163 is illustrated as ascreen on which the plurality of symbols is displayed. Here, the displaycontrol unit 112 determines whether the direction of the display unit160 is changed (S32). In a case where the direction of the display unit160 is not changed (“No” in S32), the display control unit 112 proceedsto operation S34. On the other hand, in a case where the direction ofthe display unit 160 is changed (“Yes” in S32), the display control unit112 changes boundaries between groups according to the direction of thedisplay unit 160 (S33).

For example, in a case where the direction of the display unit 160 ischanged such that the display unit 160 becomes horizontally long as inthe example illustrated in FIG. 10, the display control unit 112 maychange boundaries between groups as in the example illustrated in FIG.10. Subsequently, when the input unit 120 receives, from the user, theinput of information indicating a pointing position for specifying oneor more symbols among the plurality of symbols, the position acquisitionunit 111 acquires the information indicating the pointing position fromthe input unit 120 (S34). Subsequently, the display control unit 112controls the display unit 160 such that an object indicating a groupcorresponding to the pointing position is displayed (S35). Subsequently,the display control unit 112 performs a process of extraction fromrecorded data, based on a plurality of symbols belonging to the group ofthe pointing position (S36). Then, the display control unit 112 controlsthe display unit 160 such that extraction results are displayed asselection candidates (S37). Subsequently, when the user performs anoperation of selection from the selection candidates, the displaycontrol unit 112 controls the display unit 160 such that the resultselected from the selection candidates is displayed as the selectionresult (S38). The operation may be ended after the displaying of theselection result as illustrated in FIG. 11, but the operation may alsoproceed to S32. The user can edit a sentence by adding a plurality ofselection results in sequence.

In the above, the example of changing the boundaries between the groupsaccording to the direction of the display unit 160 was described. As themethod of changing boundaries between groups, various other methods areconsidered. For example, the display control unit 112 may changeboundaries between groups according to the size of the display unit 160.More specifically, the display control unit 112 may change boundariesbetween groups such that the number of the groups is increased as thesize of the display unit 160 is increased. In this way, the objectindicating the group corresponding to the pointing position can bedisplayed to be easily viewed.

Also, the boundaries between the groups may be changed according to adeviation amount of the pointing position and the symbol. For example,the display control unit 112 may change the boundaries between thegroups based on the deviation amount of the pointing position and thesymbol of which a distance from the pointing position is closest.Specifically, the boundaries between the groups may be changed such thatthe number of the groups is increased as the deviation amount of thepointing position and the symbol of which the distance from the pointingposition is closest is decreased. This is because as the deviationamount is decreased, the accuracy of pointing by the user becomeshigher. In a case where a plurality of deviation amounts is acquired, aresult (for example, a dispersion value, an average value, or the like)obtained by performing a predetermined operation on the plurality ofdeviation amount may be used as a substitute for the deviation amount.

Alternatively, the display control unit 112 may change boundariesbetween groups, based on a deviation amount of the pointing position andthe selection result. For example, specifically, the boundaries betweenthe groups may be changed such that the number of the groups isincreased as the deviation amount of the pointing position and theselection result is decreased. This is because it can be presumed thatas the deviation amount is decreased, the accuracy of pointing by theuser becomes higher. In a case where a plurality of deviation amounts isacquired, a result (for example, a dispersion value, an average value,or the like) obtained by performing a predetermined operation on theplurality of deviation amount may be used as a substitute for thedeviation amount.

Also, portions other than the boundaries between groups may be changed.For example, the display control unit 112 may dynamically change anarrangement of at least a part of a plurality of symbols. Specifically,the display control unit 112 may dynamically change an arrangement of atleast a part of a plurality of symbols according to the direction of thedisplay unit 160. In the examples illustrated in FIGS. 9 and 10, thearrangement of all the plurality of symbols is not changed regardless ofthe direction of the display unit 160, but the display control unit 112may change the arrangement of at least a part of the plurality ofsymbols according to the direction of the display unit 160.

For example, in the case where the display unit 160 is vertically long,the display control unit 112 may change the arrangement of the pluralityof symbols such that the number of symbols arranged in the verticaldirection is increased, as compared with the display unit 160 ishorizontally long. In the example illustrated in FIG. 9, in the casewhere the display unit 160 is vertically long, the number of symbolsarranged in the vertical direction is three. In the example illustratedin FIG. 10, in the case where the display unit 160 is horizontally long,the number of symbols arranged in the horizontal direction is three.However, in the case where the display unit 160 is vertically long, thedisplay control unit 112 may change the arrangement of the plurality ofsymbols such that the number of symbols arranged in the verticaldirection becomes four or more.

Also, for example, the display control unit 112 may change anarrangement direction of a plurality of symbols in a directioncorresponding to a type of the plurality of symbols. In the case ofsymbols that are desirable when arranged in the vertical direction (forexample, a case where symbols are Chinese characters), the displaycontrol unit 112 may change the arrangement direction of the pluralityof symbols such that more symbols are arranged in the vertical directionthan in the horizontal direction. Also, in the case of symbols that aredesirable when arranged in the horizontal direction (for example, a casewhere symbols are numbers, marks, alphabets, or the like), the displaycontrol unit 112 may change the arrangement direction of the pluralityof symbols such that more symbols are arranged in the horizontaldirection than in the vertical direction.

Also, as described above, the priority may be assigned to the resultextracted from the recorded data. As the symbol is closer to thepointing position, higher priority is assigned to the symbol.Specifically, the display control unit 112 may calculate distances fromthe pointing position to each symbol and assign priority to each symbolaccording to each distance. However, parameters other than the distancefrom the pointing position to each symbol may be additionallyconsidered.

For example, it is considered that the possibility of erroneous pointingbetween symbols within the same group is higher than the possibility oferroneous pointing between symbols within different groups. Therefore,when the distance from the pointing position to each symbol iscalculated, it is desirable that the display control unit 112 arrangesthe symbols of the different groups to be spaced apart from one anotherthan in the case of the symbols of the same group. A specific examplewill be described below with reference to FIG. 12.

FIG. 12 is a diagram for describing an example of a calculation of apriority of each symbol. As illustrated in FIG. 12, it is consideredthat the possibility of erroneous pointing between symbols within thesame group (between symbol “d” and symbol “s”) is higher than thepossibility of erroneous pointing between symbols within differentgroups (between symbol “d” and symbol “f”). Therefore, for example, asillustrated in FIG. 12, the display control unit 112 may correct theposition of each symbol such that the symbols of different groups arespaced away from one another than the symbols of the same group.

Subsequently, the operation flow of the display control apparatus 10according to the embodiment of the present disclosure will be describedwith reference to FIG. 13 (with reference to other drawings asappropriate). In particular, FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating theoperation flow of the display control apparatus 10 in association withthe example of considering the priority of each symbol. Since theexample illustrated in FIG. 13 is an example of the operation flow ofthe display control apparatus 10, the operation flow of the displaycontrol apparatus 10 is not limited to the example illustrated in FIG.13.

First, the display control unit 112 controls the display unit 160 suchthat a plurality of symbols is displayed (S41). Subsequently, when theinput unit 120 receives, from the user, the input of informationindicating a pointing position for specifying one or more symbols amongthe plurality of symbols, the position acquisition unit 111 acquires theinformation indicating the pointing position from the input unit 120(S42). Subsequently, the display control unit 112 controls the displayunit 160 such that an object indicating a group corresponding to thepointing position is displayed (S43). Subsequently, the display controlunit 112 calculates priority of each symbol (S44). For example, thedisplay control unit 112 may calculate higher priority as the symbol iscloser to the pointing position. Specifically, the display control unit112 may calculate distances from the pointing position to each symboland assign priority to each symbol according to each distance. However,as described above, parameters other than the distance from the pointingposition to each symbol may be additionally considered.

Subsequently, the display control unit 112 performs a process ofextraction from recorded data, based on a plurality of symbols belongingto the group of the pointing position. Then, the display control unit112 controls the display unit 160 such that extraction resultscorresponding to the priority of each symbol are displayed as selectioncandidates (S45). When the user performs an operation of selection fromthe selection candidates, the display control unit 112 controls thedisplay unit 160 such that the result selected from the selectioncandidates is displayed as the selection result (S46). The operation maybe ended after the displaying of the selection result as illustrated inFIG. 13, but the operation may also proceed to S42. The user can edit asentence by adding a plurality of selection results in sequence. In theabove, the function of the display control apparatus 10 according to theembodiment of the present disclosure was described in detail.

4. EXAMPLE OF HARDWARE CONFIGURATION OF DISPLAY CONTROL APPARATUS

Subsequently, an example of hardware configuration of the displaycontrol apparatus 10 according to the embodiment of the presentdisclosure will be described. FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating anexample of hardware configuration of the display control apparatus 10according to the embodiment of the present disclosure. However, theexample of hardware configuration illustrated in FIG. 14 is merely anexample hardware configuration of the display control apparatus 10.Therefore, the hardware configuration of the display control apparatus10 is not limited to the example illustrated in FIG. 14.

As illustrated in FIG. 14, the display control apparatus 10 include acentral processing unit (CPU) 801, a read only memory (ROM) 802, arandom access memory (RAM) 803, a sensor 804, an input device 808, anoutput device 810, a storage device 811, a drive 812, and acommunication device 815.

The CPU 801 functions as an arithmetic processing unit and a controller,and controls overall operations inside the display control apparatus 10according to various programs. Also, the CPU 801 may be amicroprocessor. The ROM 802 stores programs or arithmetic parametersdata and the like which are used by the CPU 801. The RAM 803 temporarilystores programs which are used in the execution of the CPU 801, orparameters which are appropriately changed upon execution thereof. Theseare mutually connected through a host bus configured by a CPU bus or thelike.

The sensor 804 includes various detection sensors, such as a statedetection sensor for detecting a state of the display control apparatus10, and peripheral circuits thereof. Examples of the sensor 804 mayinclude a positioning sensor, a tilt sensor, an acceleration sensor, adirection sensor, a temperature sensor, a humidity sensor, and anilluminance sensor. A signal detected by the sensor 804 is transmittedto the CPU 801. In this way, the CPU 801 can know the state (position,tilt, acceleration, direction, temperature, humidity, illumination, orthe like) of the display control apparatus 10.

The input device 808 includes an operation unit configured to allow theuser to input information, such as a mouse, a keyboard, a touch panel, abutton (power button or the like), a microphone, a switch, a dial, and alever, and an input control circuit configured to generate an inputsignal based on a user input and output the input signal to the CPU 801.The user of the display control apparatus 10 can input various data orinstruct the processing operations to the display control apparatus 10by operating the input device 808. Also, the installation position ofthe operation unit is not particularly limited. For example, theoperation unit may be installed on a housing side surface of the displaycontrol apparatus 10, or may be installed on the same surface as thesurface on which a display is installed.

The output device 810 may include a display device such as, for example,a liquid crystal display (LCD), an organic light emitting diode (OLED),and a lamp. Furthermore, the output device 810 may include an audiooutput device such as a speaker and a headphone. For example, thedisplay device displays a captured image or a generated image. On theother hand, the audio output device converts audio data or the like intoaudio.

The storage device 811 is a device for data storage that is configuredas an example of the storage unit of the display control apparatus 10.The storage device 811 may include a storage medium, a recording devicethat records data in the storage medium, a reading device that readsdata from the storage medium, and an erasing device that erases datarecorded on the storage medium. The storage device 811 stores programsor various data which are executed by the CPU 801.

The drive 812 is a reader/writer for storage medium and is internally orexternally mounted in the display control apparatus 10. The drive 812reads information recorded in a removable storage medium, such as amagnetic disk, an optical disk, a magneto-optical disk, or asemiconductor memory mounted thereon, and outputs the read informationto the RAM 803. Also, the drive 812 can write information to theremovable storage medium.

The communication device 815 communicates with an external device via anetwork (or directly). The communication device 815 may be an interfacefor wireless communication. For example, the communication device 815may include a communication antenna, a radio frequency (RF) circuit, abaseband processor, and the like. Specific examples of the interface forwireless communication may include a communication unit such as a modemsupporting a communication scheme, such as a code division multipleaccess (CDMA), a wideband code division multiple access (W-CDMA), a longterm evolution (LTE), a wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi, registered trademark).

Also, the communication device 815 may be an interface for wiredcommunication. For example, the communication device 815 may include aconnection terminal, a transmission circuit, and a circuit for othercommunication processing. Also, the CPU 801 and the communication device815 may be configured by a single chip, or may be implemented asseparate devices. Also, although not illustrated in FIG. 14, the displaycontrol apparatus 10, for example, may be driven by power supplied froma power source such as a rechargeable battery, and the power source maybe configured to be detachable from the display control apparatus 10.

In the above, the example of hardware configuration of the displaycontrol apparatus 10 according to the embodiment of the presentdisclosure was described. For example, the communication unit 150, theinput unit 120, the display unit 160, and the storage unit 140 can berealized by the communication device 815, the input device 808, theoutput device 810, and the storage device 811, respectively. Also, thecontrol unit 110 (in particular, the position acquisition unit 111 andthe display control unit 112) can be realized by the CPU 801. Therefore,a program causing a computer to function as the display controlapparatus 10 including the position acquisition unit 111 and the displaycontrol unit 112 can be stored in the storage device 811, the ROM 802,or the RAM 803, and the CPU 801 can execute the relevant program.

Also, the configuration for outputting display control information tothe display unit 160 corresponds to an example of the “output unit”. Asa specific example, the output unit can be realized by a device such asa signal line positioned between the CPU 801 and the bus 806 illustratedin FIG. 14. Also, the display control information can be realized by avideo signal such as an RGB signal or a high-definition multimediainterface (HDMI) used for controlling the output device 810 (forexample, display, or the like) by the CPU 801.

If the operation of the above-described display control apparatus 10 isrealized, the position of each configuration illustrated in FIG. 2 isnot particularly limited. As a specific example, each of the input unit120, the display unit 160, control unit 110, and the storage unit 140may be provided in different information processing devices connectedthrough the network. In this case, the information processing device inwhich the control unit 110 and the storage unit 140 are provided, forexample, may correspond to a server such as a web server or a cloudserver, and the input unit 120 and the display unit 160 may correspondto a client connected to the network.

As described above, in a case where the function of the display controlapparatus 10 is realized by the client and the server, the configuration(for example, communication interface such as a modem) in which theserver including the display control unit 112 transmits the displaycontrol information to the client through the network corresponds to anexample of the “output unit”. Also, in a case where the function of thedisplay control apparatus 10 is realized by the client and the server,the contents of the display control information may be appropriatelychanged according to the system configuration. As a specific example, ina case where the described-above screen is displayed on the browser ofthe client side, the display control information may be realized by amarkup language, such as a hyper text markup language (HTML), a standardgeneralized markup language (SGML), an extensible markup language (XML),or the like.

Also, the above display control information is merely an example and maybe appropriately changed according to a method for transmitting andreceiving information between the display control unit 112 and thedisplay unit 160, a type of a transmission line, or a medium (forexample, a wireless signal or light) used in information transmissionand reception.

Also, in the above, the example in which the display control apparatus10 is realized by the wearable display device was described. However, ina case where the function of the display control apparatus 10 isrealized by the client and the server, the client may be realized by thewearable display device.

5. CONCLUSION

As described above, according to the embodiment of the presentdisclosure, there is provided the display control apparatus 10 includingthe display control unit 112 configured to control the display unit 160such that a plurality of symbols is displayed to be visible to the user,and the position acquisition unit 111 configured to acquire informationindicating the pointing position for specifying one or more symbolsamong the plurality of symbols. The display control unit 112 controlsthe display unit 160 such that a predetermined object is displayed toindicate a group to which a plurality of symbols belongs according tothe pointing position.

According to such a configuration, since the group is greater than thesymbol, it is possible to allow a user to more reliably recognizeinformation related to the symbol corresponding to the pointingposition. Also, it is possible to reduce a possibility that will givethe user a feeling of pressure that the user has to perform an accuratepointing with respect to a desired symbol, thereby allowing the user toperform the pointing more comfortably. Furthermore, since thepossibility that an incorrect pointing will be performed between groupsis smaller than the possibility that an incorrect pointing will beperformed between symbols, it is possible to reduce the possibility thatan incorrect pointing will be performed.

The preferred embodiments of the present disclosure have been describedin detail with reference to the appended drawings, but the technicalscope of the present disclosure is not limited to such examples. Itshould be understood by those skilled in the art that it is apparentthat various modifications and alterations may occur within the scope oftechnical idea described in the appended claims and this is understoodthat it naturally belongs to the technical range of the disclosure.

For example, the operation of the display control apparatus 10 is notnecessarily performed in time series in order described in theflowchart. For example, the operation of the display control apparatus10 may be performed in a different order from that described in theflowchart, or at least a part of the operation described in theflowchart may be performed in parallel. Also, hardware embedded in thecomputer, such as a CPU, a ROM, and a RAM, can be implemented by aprogram for exhibiting the same functions as the configuration of theabove-described display control apparatus 10. Also, it is possible toprovide a non-transitory computer-readable recording medium storing therelevant program. Also, the effects described herein are only forillustrative or explanatory purposes, not limiting purposes. That is, itis apparent to those skilled in the art that other effects from thedescription herein can be provided, in addition to or alternative to theabove effects, in the relevant technology in the disclosure.

Additionally, the present technology may also be configured as below.

(1) A display control apparatus including:

a display control unit configured to control a display unit in a mannerthat a plurality of symbols is visibly displayed to a user; and

a position acquisition unit configured to acquire information indicatinga pointing position for specifying one or more symbols among theplurality of symbols,

wherein the display control unit controls the display unit in a mannerthat a predetermined object is displayed to indicate a group to whichthe plurality of symbols belongs according to the pointing position.

(2) The display control apparatus according to (1),

wherein the display control unit dynamically changes boundaries betweenthe groups.

(3) The display control apparatus according to (2),

wherein the display control unit changes boundaries between the groupsaccording to a direction of the display unit.

(4) The display control apparatus according to (2),

wherein the display control unit changes boundaries between the groupsaccording to a size of the display unit.

(5) The display control apparatus according to any one of (1) to (4),

wherein the display control unit dynamically changes a position of atleast a part of the plurality of symbols.

(6) The display control apparatus according to (5),

wherein the display control unit changes an arrangement direction of theplurality of symbols in a direction corresponding to a type of theplurality of symbols.

(7) The display control apparatus according to any one of (1) to (6),

wherein the display control unit displays results extracted fromrecorded data on the display unit based on a symbol belonging to a groupof the pointing position.

(8) The display control apparatus according to (7),

wherein the display control unit displays the extracted results on thedisplay unit as selection candidates and displays a result selected fromthe selection candidates on the display unit as a selection result.

(9) The display control apparatus according to (7),

wherein the display control unit preferentially displays the extractionresult on the display unit based on the symbol, of which a distance fromthe pointing position is closest.

(10) The display control apparatus according to (9),

wherein the display control unit changes the boundaries between thegroups based on a deviation amount of the pointing position and thesymbol of which the distance from the pointing position is closest.

(11) The display control apparatus according to (9),

wherein, when the distance from the pointing position is calculated, thedisplay control unit arranges the symbols of different groups to bespaced apart from one another than in the symbols of a same group.

(12) The display control apparatus according to (7),

wherein, when an extraction result is extracted based on each of a firstsymbol and a second symbol belonging to a same group, the displaycontrol unit changes the boundaries between the groups in a manner thatthe first symbol and the second symbol belong to different groups.

(13) The display control apparatus according to any one of (1) to (12),

wherein the display control unit attaches a highlight display to asymbol, of which a distance from the pointing position is closest.

(14) The display control apparatus according to (13),

wherein, when the pointing position is moved within a same group, thedisplay control unit moves the highlight display within the same group.

(15) The display control apparatus according to any one of (1) to (14),

wherein the display control unit controls the display unit in a mannerthat the extraction result is displayed on the display unit, based on asymbol string generated by sequentially combining symbols belonging tothe group of the pointing position whenever the pointing position ispointed.

(16) The display control apparatus according to any one of (1) to (15),

wherein the pointing position is determined based on at least one of aline-of-sight detection result and a result detected by a touch panel.

(17) The display control apparatus according to any one of (1) to (16),

wherein a direction of the display unit is calculated based on at leastone of an image captured by an imaging device and a result measured byan acceleration sensor.

(18) The display control apparatus according to any one of (1) to (16),

wherein a direction of the display unit is preset by a user.

(19) A display control method including:

controlling a display unit in a manner that a plurality of symbols isvisibly displayed to a user;

acquiring information indicating a pointing position for specifying oneor more symbols among the plurality of symbols; and

causing a processor to control the display unit in a manner that apredetermined object is displayed to indicate a group to which theplurality of symbols belongs according to the pointing position.

(20) A program for causing a computer to function as a display controlapparatus including:

a display control unit configured to control a display unit in a mannerthat a plurality of symbols is visibly displayed to a user; and

a position acquisition unit configured to acquire information indicatinga pointing position for specifying one or more symbols among theplurality of symbols,

wherein the display control unit controls the display unit in a mannerthat a predetermined object is displayed to indicate a group to whichthe plurality of symbols belongs according to the pointing position.

What is claimed is:
 1. A display control apparatus, comprising: adisplay control unit configured to: display, on a display unit, aplurality of symbols that are divided into a plurality of groups basedon at least one boundary; display, on the display unit, an object basedon a pointing position that specifies at least one symbol among theplurality of symbols, display, on the display unit, extraction resultsthat are extracted based on a first symbol of the plurality of symbolsand a second symbol of the plurality of symbols, wherein the firstsymbol and second symbol belong to a first group of the plurality ofgroups; and change the at least one boundary between the plurality ofgroups based on the extraction results such that the first symbol andthe second symbol are arranged in different groups of the plurality ofgroups; and a position acquisition unit configured to acquireinformation based on the pointing position, wherein the object indicatesa group from the plurality of groups.
 2. The display control apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein the display control unit is furtherconfigured to change the at least one boundary between the plurality ofgroups based on a direction of the display unit.
 3. The display controlapparatus according to claim 1, wherein the display control unit isfurther configured to change the at least one boundary between theplurality of groups based on a size of a displayable region of thedisplay unit, and wherein the size of the displayable region of thedisplay unit corresponds to a direction of the display unit.
 4. Thedisplay control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the displaycontrol unit is further configured to dynamically change a position ofthe at least one symbol of the plurality of symbols.
 5. The displaycontrol apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the display control unitis further configured to change an arrangement direction of theplurality of symbols in a direction corresponding to a type of theplurality of symbols.
 6. The display control apparatus according toclaim 1, wherein the displayed extraction results are extracted fromrecorded data on the display unit based on the first symbol and thesecond symbol.
 7. The display control apparatus according to claim 1,wherein the display control unit is further configured to: display theextraction results on the display unit as selection candidates; anddisplay a result selected from the selection candidates on the displayunit as a selection result.
 8. The display control apparatus accordingto claim 1, wherein the display control unit is further configured todisplay the extraction results on the display unit based on a thirdsymbol among the plurality of symbols, wherein the third symbol has asmallest distance from the pointing position.
 9. The display controlapparatus according to claim 8, wherein the display control unit isfurther configured to change the at least one boundary between theplurality of groups based on a deviation amount of the pointing positionand the third symbol which has the smallest distance from the pointingposition.
 10. The display control apparatus according to claim 8,wherein the display control unit is further configured to arrange theplurality of symbols to calculate a distance between the pointingposition and each of the plurality of symbols, wherein the arrangementcomprises a first distance between two symbols of different groups ofthe plurality of groups and a second distance between two symbols ofsame groups of the plurality of groups, wherein the first distance islarger than the second distance.
 11. The display control apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein the display control unit is furtherconfigured to attach a highlight display to the at least one symbol,wherein the at least one symbol has a smallest distance from thepointing position.
 12. The display control apparatus according to claim11, wherein the display control unit is further configured to move thehighlight display within a same group, based on a movement of thepointing position within the same group.
 13. The display controlapparatus according to claim 1, wherein the displayed extraction resultsare further based on a symbol string that is generated by sequentialcombination of symbols belonging to the group indicated by the object.14. The display control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein thepointing position is determined based on at least one of a line-of-sightdetection result or a result detected by a touch panel.
 15. The displaycontrol apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a direction of thedisplay unit is calculated based on at least one of an image captured byan imaging device or a result measured by an acceleration sensor. 16.The display control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a directionof the display unit is preset by a user.
 17. A display control method,comprising: displaying a plurality of symbols that are divided into aplurality of groups based on at least one boundary; acquiringinformation based on a pointing position for specifying at least onesymbol among the plurality of symbols; displaying an object based on thepointing position, wherein the object indicates a group from theplurality of groups; displaying extraction results that are extractedbased on a first symbol of the plurality of symbols and a second symbolof the plurality of symbols, wherein the first symbol and second symbolbelong to a first group of the plurality of groups; and changing the atleast one boundary between the plurality of groups based on theextraction results such that the first symbol and the second symbol arearranged in different groups of the plurality of groups.
 18. Anon-transitory computer readable medium having stored thereoncomputer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor,cause a computer to perform operations, the operations comprising:displaying a plurality of symbols that are divided into a plurality ofgroups based on at least one boundary; acquiring information based on apointing position for specifying at least one symbol among the pluralityof symbols; displaying an object based on the pointing position, whereinthe object indicates a group from the plurality of groups based on thepointing position; displaying extraction results that are extractedbased on a first symbol of the plurality of symbols and a second symbolof the plurality of symbols, wherein the first symbol and second symbolbelong to a first group of the plurality of groups; and changing the atleast one boundary between the plurality of groups based on theextraction results such that the first symbol and the second symbol arearranged in different groups of the plurality of groups.